SWATCH SUNDAY — ACO by Ardene Bonne Nuit

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday! I hope everyone is having a lovely weekend. We’re halfway through January & that’s kind of crazy.

But everyone in my social media feeds keep taking nostalgic trips back to 2016, so I thought I would do the same — only with nail polish! & back on 2016 I was all about the Ardene brand of nail polishes, so I thought I would share a beauty from that time: Aco by Ardene Bonne Nuit.

1 coat over Rimmel Blue Eyed Girl + top coat.

So yes, I did use some under-polish for swatching this beauty because it. is. thin. But I think it applies beautifully & you really get that shift of colour from blue to a purple hue. There is a nice micro glitter shimmer as well, which I remember loving a lot in the mid-2000s!

Now this shade is definitely a relict of another time, because Ardene no longer sells this brand of nail polish. I still have a drawer of this brand in my stash, that I stare at frequently, & every so often pull out for nostalgia sake. I also love that they were so trendy when it came to finishes, at a very affordable price point!

What do you think of this very mid-2010s nail polish? Do you remember what shades you were obsessed with circa 2016? Let me know what shades you were obsessed with back then, & if they are still top of your list 10 years later!

Happy Sunday loves!

🖤

Purple & Gold Dotticure 💜✨

Hey beauties, happy Wednesday!

It’s another snowy Wednesday here, which is making this December feel very festive. I think this is the most snow we’ve had in a December in longer than I can remember. Now if only I could get enough holiday spirit to get my shopping finished.

Today I’m sharing a pretty holiday-esque design. Not outright Christmas, but using some older season Holiday polishes so I feel like it counts! Plus it wouldn’t look out of place at a Holiday party while you drink too many eggnogs!

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Sally Hansen Miracle Cure
  • Top Coat: Essie Speed Setter
  • Morgan Taylor Plum-thing Magical (2017 Little Miss Nutcracker collection)
  • OPI Rolling in Cashmere (Gwen Stephanie Holiday 2014 collection)
  • Small-ish dotting tool

Oh goodness, I just adore a good dotticure. The gold looks lovely against the purple-y plum base, especially with its shimmer. This is such a simple look to do, but eye catching at the same time. I love it! & sometimes I just need to rock a colour other than red or green, you know?

What do you think of the glam dotticure? Would you wear a design like this? Can you believe we’re two weeks away from Christmas Eve, & 15 days away from Christmas morning? Crazy!

Happy Wednesday

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Avon Stardust Collection Silver Crystals

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday! Can you believe tomorrow is December 1st — we officially have 32 days of 2025 left. That is just crazy!

Today I have another throwback shade from my stash to show you. I’ve been feeling glitter (a lot) lately, so that’s what I’ve been wearing! Trying to get myself hyped up for the season. & when I saw this glittery textured Polish on my stash, I knew I had to share!

2 coats + top coat

Hello textured glittery perfect. This is Avon Stardust in Silver Crystals & it’s a beautiful grey with lilac undertones & large & small glitters. It dries down to a rocky texture, but I did apply top coat to mine which smooths that texture out some, but helped with wear.

The colour is really pretty. It’s silvery, but it’s lilac, & those multi sized glitters really pop. This shade was released around 2014 (I believe) at the height, or near the end, of the textured polishes boom. I’ve always been a huge fan of these glittery textured polishes, so I’m glad I’ve kept this beauty in my stash all these years.

The close up really shows off all those beautiful glitters. & you can see that even with the layer of top coat, the textured finish comes through — just not as roughly.

The removal was a bit tricky & needed a lot of strong nail polish remover. I had glitter all over my hands afterwards, but nothing a little soap & water can’t fix. & it was totally worth it for that sparkle.

As I mentioned, this shade was released around 2014 so it is no longer available. I’m not even sure if Avon still makes nail polish anymore. But I am certainly glad to have this shade in my stash, & wearing it did make me feel a little festive.

Also: nail polish companies — bring back textured nail polish! It’s such a fun finish to wear, & I would love more shades in my collection!

What do you think about this textured shade? Do you enjoy textured nail polish? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below!

Happy Sunday!

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Milani 17A Deep Thoughts

Good morning lovelies & happy Sunday! How are we already the second Sunday into November. I should probably start thinking about Christmas shopping soon!

Today I found a super forgotten shade in my stash, that I hadn’t realized I’d never swatched! This is Milani 17A Deep Thoughts.

2 coats + top coat

Oooooh boy this is a beautiful deep, dark purple with a stunning purple/pink shimmer. It does appear darker on my nail than in the bottle—I’m scared maybe I didn’t shake it enough to get the shimmer to show up. It’s there — it’s just a little more subtle than I would like.

But, for a 13 year old polish this beauty is still looking amazing & applying amazing! I was actually really impressed with just how flawlessly the formula applied! This shade was released sometime in 2012 (according to my internet—Google—research). Sadly, Milani has since discontinued their nail polish production, which is a shame because they did it very, very well!

Close up! One of the things I love about this colour is that from far away, it almost looks black. & then when you get closer you can see it’s dark purple colour & the subtle shimmer, & it’s really just so beautiful. I’m quite obsessed with the overall package.

What do you think about Milani 17A Deep Thoughts? Do you love this deep dark purple shade? Do you remember Milani’s line of nail polishes?

Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below!

🖤

SWATCH SUNDAY—China Glaze Emerald Fitzgerald (Fall 2010 Vintage Vixen Collection)

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday. The first Sunday of November! I hope everyone had a fantastic Halloween. I definitely ate my weight in mini bags of Sour Patch Kids & Starbursts.

But now we’re moving on from Halloween, at least for another 363 days, & it’s time to focus on the latter part of this year! I thought for today’s Swatch Sunday post I would pull a favourite from my stash to share, that is the perfect colour story for a November day. This is Emerald Fitzgerald from the 2010 vintage vixen collection.

2 coats + top coat

The formula on this beautiful dark green was a bit on the thin side, but easy to apply. It needed two coats for full cover, but as you can see from my swatches, it covered beautifully. For a nail polish that is potentially 15 years ago — I purchased mine on clearance circa 2013 or so — she doesn’t seem affected by age at all. The dark green colour has a beautiful shimmer that’s very easy to see both in the bottle & on the nail.

Close up shot really shows of that shimmer that’s so prevalent in the formula & it’s truly stunning. It gives this colour a little bit more depth which is just stunning. & I’m not usually a green kind of girl, but I think because this one has kind of a blue-ish undertone to it, it has always drawn my eyes more than your typical green.

It really is the perfect green for this inbetween time after Halloween, but before Christmas/Holiday designs start. It’s just such. stunning jewel tone.

What do you think about this old school China Glaze shade? Like I mentioned, I purchased this guy going on 13 years ago — & it was released 15 years ago — so she’s not easily found in circulation nowadays, but I did find a few listings for it online when I was trying to find out information about it’s original released.

Happy Sunday!

♥︎